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Baja California overtakes Guanajuato as Mexico’s most violent state: Tuesday’s mañanera recapped

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MND Staff
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According to the federal government, daily homicides have dropped more than 50% since September 2024, the final month of Andrés Manuel López Obrador's presidency.
According to the federal government, daily homicides have dropped more than 50% since September 2024, the final month of Andrés Manuel López Obrador's presidency. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)

Sheinbaum’s mañanera in 60 seconds

  • 📉 Homicides fall 30.6% year over year in September: National Public Security System chief Marcela Figueroa reported an average of 42.2 homicides per day last month, down from 60.8 per day in September 2025.
  • 📊 Homicides down 51.4% from September 2024: Figueroa said the decline was “more than 52%” compared to López Obrador’s final month in office, but her data showed a 51.4% reduction.
  • 📍 Baja California overtakes Guanajuato as Mexico’s most violent state: Baja California recorded 1,092 homicides from January to September (8.5% of the national total of 12,854), narrowly ahead of Guanajuato with 1,089.
  • ✅ Homicides decline in all 32 states in first nine months of 2026: San Luis Potosí recorded the steepest year-over-year drop (78.6%). Nayarit, Quintana Roo, Baja California Sur, Nuevo León and Zacatecas also saw declines of more than 50%.
  • 🔫 Over 14,000 weapons handed in since Sheinbaum took office: Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez said 14,077 firearms and explosive devices were “voluntarily” turned in under the Sí al Desarme, Sí a la Paz program between Oct. 1, 2024 and Oct. 12, 2026.
  • 🚨 70,571 arrests for high-impact crimes in two years: Security Minister Omar García Harfuch said authorities also seized 36,303 firearms and almost 570 tonnes of drugs, and dismantled 2,792 clandestine drug labs, between Oct. 1, 2024 and Sept. 30, 2026.
  • 🏥 Sheinbaum rejects claims of “crisis” in public healthcare as IMSS workers protest: Asked about the protests scheduled for Tuesday, the president acknowledged the need to hire more specialists, promised higher resident doctor scholarships in 2027 and admitted medicine distribution problems remain. She said healthcare workers’ legitimate demands would be addressed and urged them to protest peacefully.

Why today’s mañanera matters

Federal officials presented the government’s monthly security report at President Sheinbaum’s Tuesday morning press conference.

Data showed that homicides declined significantly in September, continuing a downward trend seen throughout 2026.

Sheinbaum and other officials assert that the reduction in homicides and other crimes is evidence that the government’s security strategy is working.  However, there is skepticism about the accuracy of the government’s homicide numbers, which are based on data provided by Attorney General’s Offices in each of Mexico’s 32 federal entities.

While security was the main focus of today’s mañanera, Sheinbaum also fielded a question about the national protests scheduled for Tuesday, at which Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) healthcare workers will demand higher pay and better working conditions, and denounce a lack of medications and medical supplies at IMSS hospitals. In Mexico City, a large protest march (megamarcha) is scheduled to set off from the Siglo XXI National Medical Center on Tuesday afternoon.

Homicides fall 30% year over year in September 

National Public Security System chief Marcela Figueroa reported that there was an average of 42.2 homicides per day in September, a decline of 30.6% compared to the same month of 2026.

Compared to August, the daily homicide rate rose 3.2%.

Homicides declined 51% in September compared to 2 years earlier 

Figueroa said that homicides declined “more than 52%” last month compared to September 2024, the final month of Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s presidency.

However, the data she presented showed a slightly lower reduction of 51.4%. There was an average of 86.9 homicides per day in September 2024, compared to an average of 42.2 per day last month.

Figueroa presented data that showed that last month was the least violent September of any year since 2015.

Baja California overtakes Guanajuato as Mexico’s most violent state  

Figueroa reported that Baja California recorded the highest number of homicides among Mexico’s 32 federal entities in the first nine months of 2026. There were 1,092 homicides in the northern border state between January and September, representing 8.5% of the national total (12,854).

The murder count in Baja California was slightly higher than that in Guanajuato, which has been Mexico’s most violent state in terms of homicides in recent years. Until the end of August, Guanajuato was the most violent state in 2026 as well.

However, in the nine months to the end of September, Guanajuato ranked as the second most violent state, recording 1,089 homicides or 8.5% of the national total.

The five states that recorded the next highest homicide counts in the first nine months of 2026 were:

  • Chihuahua: 1,009 (7.8% of the national total)
  • Sinaloa: 987 (7.7%)
  • México state: 818 (6.4%)
  • Guerrero: 731 (5.7%)
  • Morelos: 673 (5.2%)

The seven states with the highest murder counts between January and September accounted for almost half (49.8%) of all homicides perpetrated in Mexico in the period.

Oaxaca, Jalisco and Michoacán ranked eighth, ninth and tenth, respectively, for total homicides in the first nine months of 2026. Mexico City ranked 12th with 585 homicides.

Yucatán recorded the lowest number of homicides among Mexico’s 32 federal entities, with just 21 between January and September.

Homicides declined in every state in the first 9 months of 2026  

Figueroa reported that homicides declined in every federal entity in the first nine months of the year. Compared to the January-September period of last year, homicides fell 78.6% in San Luis Potosí, the largest reduction of any state.

Five other states recorded year-over-year declines in homicides of more than 50%. They were:

  • Nayarit: 69.5%
  • Quintana Roo: 59.7%
  • Baja California Sur: 54.6%
  • Nuevo León: 51.5%
  • Zacatecas: 50.4%

Mexicans have handed in more than 14,000 firearms and explosive devices since Sheinbaum took office 

Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez reported that 14,077 firearms and explosive devices were “voluntarily” handed over to authorities between Oct. 1, 2024 — the date Sheinbaum was sworn in as president — and Oct. 12, 2026. The weapons were turned in under the government program Sí al Desarme, Sí a la Paz (Yes to Disarmament, Yes to Peace).

Rodríguez noted that people who handed over weapons received cash from authorities. She also said that children have exchanged more than 15,000 “war toys” for “educational toys” since Sheinbaum took office.

Over 70,000 arrests since Sheinbaum took office 

Security Minister Omar García Harfuch reported that 70,571 people were arrested for allegedly committing high-impact crimes between Oct. 1, 2024 and Sept. 30, 2026. Among the offenses classified as high-impact crimes are murder, kidnapping, violent robbery, rape and extortion.

According to the information presented by García Harfuch, authorities seized 36,303 firearms and almost 570 tonnes of drugs between Oct. 1, 2024, and Sept. 30, 2026.

In addition, authorities dismantled 2,792 clandestine drug laboratories in the same period.

Sheinbaum pledges to address the concerns of protesting healthcare workers 

A reporter asked the president what message she would send to IMSS workers planning to protest on Thursday.

Sheinbaum first pointed to her government’s healthcare achievements.

Sheinbaum at podium Oct. 13, 2026
Sheinbaum said her government would address legitimate demands of public healthcare workers, but rejected claims that there is a “crisis” in Mexico’s health system. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)

“It’s important that what we’ve done in two years is known,” she said before reporting a range of achievements, including the construction of 34 new public hospitals and the opening or modernization of 650 operating rooms.

“We haven’t had our arms crossed. We’ve been working intensely for two years to support the country’s healthcare system,” Sheinbaum said.

She acknowledged that there is more to do, specifically noting that authorities need to hire more specialist doctors for the public health system. Sheinbaum also said that resident doctors’ “scholarships” need to be increased, and pledged that would happen in 2027.

“They earn less than the minimum wage,” she said.

“And a lot of the time the work of specialists falls on them. … The operation of [public] hospitals is supported by them in many cases,” Sheinbaum said.

She also said that the government has work to do to resolve problems related to the distribution of medications, although she indicated that the Rutas de la Salud (Health Routes) program — which delivers medicines and medical supplies to public healthcare facilities — is functioning well.

Sheinbaum said her government would address legitimate demands of public healthcare workers, but rejected claims that there is a “crisis” in Mexico’s health system. She said that healthcare workers have the “freedom” to protest, but urged them to do so peacefully.

“The objective is to have the best healthcare system and make progress on [addressing] some deficiencies we’ve had for some time,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

Army rescues 32 in Ensenada as floods and landslides endanger lives on Mexico’s Pacific coast

By
MND Staff
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0
Soldiers and guardsmen on Monday rescued 32 people stranded outside Ensenada, Baja California, after a mudslide caused by Tropical Storm Rachel cut off their only escape route.
Soldiers and guardsmen on Monday rescued 32 people stranded outside Ensenada, Baja California, after a mudslide caused by Tropical Storm Rachel cut off their only escape route. (Sedena/Cuartoscuro)

Air search and rescue operations are ramping up as twin storm systems batter Mexico’s Pacific coast, causing the deaths of at least five people.

In response to Hurricanes Rachel and Simon, the Defense Ministry (Sedena) has activated Plan DN-III-E, its operational emergency management plan that places thousands of soldiers, sailors and national guardsmen on alert to protect and aid civilians during natural disasters. Some 14,000 federal and state agents were deployed across Baja California to respond to the emergency.

members of Mexico's security forces clear downed trees following Tropical Storm Rachel
Five people remain missing in the area of Ensenada, Baja California, after the passage of Tropical Storm Rachel. (Omar Martínez/Cuartoscuro)

Soldiers and guardsmen on Monday rescued 32 people stranded outside Ensenada, Baja California, after a mudslide caused by Tropical Storm Rachel cut off their only escape route.

The Air Force employed a “UH-60” Black Hawk helicopter to carry out three air operations, rescuing 22 foreign nationals, 10 Mexicans and three dogs.

The evacuees were members of the Genesis religious community, a Christian ministry that operates orphan care, camps and community outreach programs just outside the port city in the northwestern part of the peninsula.

Rachel, now wreaking havoc in southern California and places as far inland as Las Vegas, has already claimed the lives of four people — including two children — in Mexico. 

Baja authorities say at least five others remain missing as floodwaters swept away vehicles, damaged homes and knocked out electricity in Ensenada, while landslides and overflowing rivers were causing problems across the state.

In addition to Sedena’s efforts, Tijuana’s mayor ordered specialized personnel from the municipality’s Security Ministry to support operations in Ensenada, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) to the south.

The Tijuana delegation includes specialists from the Fire Department trained in rescue maneuvers in rugged terrain and hydrometeorological contingency situations, members of the Canine Unit and agents from its Search Cell division.

Farther south, Hurricane Simon is following in Rachel’s path. 

Simon claimed the life of a 71-year-old man in Chilpancingo, Guerrero, while also downing trees and electricity poles, making roads impassable and flooding homes in coastal towns.

Though Simon has weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, it is expected to maintain hurricane strength through Wednesday, though its short-term direction and intensity track have defied forecasters’ expectations.

About 127 to 255 millimeters (5 to 10 inches) of rain are expected from Simon across coastal west-central Mexico, with as much as 380 mm (15 inches) in the state of Sinaloa by Thursday.

Flooding and landslides have also been reported in the states of Michoacán and Colima.

With reports from Reporte Índigo, The Guardian, CBS News and La Jornada

In Santa María Atzompa, Oaxaca, clay is more than earth

By
Ena Aguilar
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Oaxacan potter stokes the fire for pottery-making in Santa María Atzompa.
To understand pottery from Santa María Atzompa, like that made by seventh-generation ceramicist Adrián Martínez Alarcón (pictured here), it's first necessary to understand the history of the town and its people. (Ena Aguilar Peláez)

Just a few kilometers from the city of Oaxaca lies Santa María Atzompa, a town that stretches across the central valleys with views toward Monte Albán. Here, pottery is part of everyday life. It is work, livelihood, tradition — and a language that has been spoken for generations.

To understand Atzompa pottery, however, you must look beyond the finished vessel. More than a simple container, the work’s shape, weight, the way it meets the fire, and even the way it is held tell a story, beginning with the land.

Zapotec culture and mythology infuse the pottery of Santa María Atzompa at studios such as Bichuga Bigu. (Ena Aguilar Peláez)

Atzompa lies beneath the former Zapotec settlement of Cerro del Bonete. As the Zapotec state continued to expand throughout the seventh and ninth centuries, the monumental complex eventually became part of Monte Albán. Hundreds of years later, the landscape’s inhabitants continue to work one of its oldest materials: clay.

A name rooted in creation myths

Even its name is significant. Atzompa comes from the Nahuatl language, meaning “above the head of the water.” Likewise, its Zapotec name, Bichuga Bigu, translates as “turtle shell.”

That second name has roots deep inside the community’s creation myth. In the traditional account, the Binni Za’a — the “people who come from the clouds” — once faced a great flood. As the water rose, a turtle appeared and offered her shell as a place of refuge. She allowed the people to enter her body, where they could find food and keep a fire burning.

The last potter: Nicanora Valdez’s vanishing legacy in clay

But the heat became too great, cracking the turtle’s shell until it broke into 13 pieces.

The people, going their separate ways, carried the pieces with them. The turtle had been divided, but she remained with them all — a physical and spiritual reminder of their refuge.

That story echoes through the way Atzompa potters work with fire. A traditional kiln can be understood as a great turtle. Its dome becomes a shell, covered with tepalcates — the broken fragments of vessels fired before, used to protect subsequent firings.

Shapes defined by function and gesture

The shape of pottery in Oaxaca is not only expressive of function and use, but also tells a story. (Ena Aguilar Peláez)

What ends one cycle becomes part of the next. In Atzompa, this relationship between what is broken and what continues helps define the material world.

The vessels made here are closely tied to food and to the gestures of preparing it. A cooking pot, a pitcher or a comal is shaped around a particular use. Each one reflects an understanding of heat, movement, texture and nourishment — a practice and symbology refined over generations.

The vessel’s form can evoke characteristics such as a face, while its subtle undulations suggest consciousness, water or mountains. According to Adrián Martínez Alarcón, founder of the local pottery studio Bichuga Bigu, a vessel’s design speaks to the very act and experience of receiving nourishment.

For example, a chocolate-drinking vessel is held with both hands, expressing gratitude for what is being received.

The bean pot tells another story; its rounded shape symbolizing a womb, which in turn represents transformation, warmth and nourishment. Inside, beans cook slowly, surrounded by the heat retained by the clay. The vessel is shaped by an intimate understanding of what happens inside it.

Then there is the comal. Circular like the sun, the comal distributes heat across its surface through a balance between clay and ash, its form the result of generations of observation and adjustment. Changing its shape is not simply a matter of changing its appearance. A square comal, for example, would respond differently to heat and could ultimately alter the piece’s behavior.

Learning to listen to the fire

Fire for pottery in Santa María Atzompa, Oaxaca
To appreciate the art of creating traditional pottery, one must learn to “listen to the fire.” (Ena Aguilar Peláez)

These forms may appear simple, but they are not. Their simplicity is the result of accumulated knowledge, the same knowledge that drew Yanet Gómez Hernández to Atzompa.

Twelve years ago, Gómez came to Oaxaca. She eventually settled in Atzompa, where she first approached Martínez looking for a sahumador, a small vessel for burning herbs during rituals, to use in a dance. What began as a search for an object became something much larger. She began learning to work with clay and collaborating with Martínez on pieces, installations and performances. Through clay, she found a space for learning.

According to Gómez and Martínez, learning tradition goes well beyond simply repeating what others teach you. It requires internalizing how something is made, as well as its history and the experience contained within a form, down to the reason behind a gesture, material, shape or a way of working. Atzompa offers a remarkable reminder of how deep that continuity can be.

For instance, a kiln documented at the archaeological site on Cerro del Bonete resembles kilns still used in the community today. The centuries between them are enormous, and yet the connection is simple: earth, fire and generations of experience.

Martínez understands that connection intimately. He is a seventh-generation ceramicist who learned the art from his mother, Ana María Hernández.

As a child, Martínez played with clay. Later, he learned to prepare the material and work with the wood-fired kiln. By his teenage years, he was already beginning his own firings. He remembers the fear that came with those first attempts, as a lifetime of his mother’s work could be lost in a few hours.

Patience, as well as a respect for natural processes, are among the reasons pottery from Santa María Atzompa is so special. (Ena Aguilar Peláez)

The kiln demands patience, but patience alone is not enough. A ceramicist must learn to read the fire, air and humidity, as well as the condition of the piece, the temperature and the wood. Everything matters. A change in the weather can change the firing. Rain, wind, heat and shade become part of the process.

Innovation that respects the roots

The clay itself also has its own rhythm, requiring rest in the shade before it is exposed to the sun. It dries according to the conditions around it. The person working with it has to observe, wait and respond.

There is no single moment when the material simply obeys; the maker must listen.

This attention also shapes Martínez’s approach to innovation. His work explores animals, natural forces and guardian beings such as the chaneques. He experiments with natural mineral pigments, with the effects of oxygen reduction, and even with impressions made by hair on a surface while the clay is still hot.

His work moves between what has been inherited and what can still be discovered. But for Martínez, innovation does not mean abandoning tradition. A living tradition can change. What matters is understanding the materials, the history, and the roots from which that change grows.

Suro Ceramics: From a humble Jalisco workshop to the world stage

This is perhaps why the fragments that cover an Atzompa kiln feel so significant: they are pieces that have already lived once. They have held food, touched hands, entered the fire and been broken.

A material that carries memory forward

Yet their story does not end there. Placed over a new firing, they become part of its protection. Their former life becomes useful again; the same principle runs through the larger story of Atzompa pottery.

A vessel begins as earth. It is shaped by hands, transformed by fire and given a purpose through food, ritual and daily life. Later, if it breaks, even its fragments may return to the kiln.

Nothing is entirely lost. The clay changes form, but it continues to carry something forward. Perhaps that is what clay holds: not only the memory of those who worked it, but the knowledge of how to live with earth, water, air, fire, food and time.

Every piece reminds us that working the earth requires attention. It asks us to slow down enough to notice what the material is saying.

And in Atzompa, the clay tells its story in its own way. Before it speaks, it listens — to water, to air, to fire, to the earth, and to the memory of all those who have touched it.

Social anthropologist and photojournalist Ena Aguilar Peláez writes on health, culture, rights and the environment, with a strong interest in intercultural interactions and historical and cultural settings.

Dozens hurt in major protest against contaminated water in Guadalajara

By
MND Staff
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GDL water protests
Arrests totaled 39 after police used tear gas and water cannons to subdue protesters outside the governor's residence. (Fernando Carranza García/Cuartoscuro)

Dozens of people were hurt and 39 arrested Sunday when a march demanding clean tap water ended in clashes outside the Jalisco governor’s residence, with police firing tear gas canisters and blasting protesters with water cannons.

About 10,000 people participated, according to state authorities, amid anger over cloudy, foul-smelling water reaching homes across the Guadalajara metropolitan area — a “crisis” (as the governor himself has termed it) that has persisted for months.

Officials reported 28 injured police officers, two seriously, and 31 civilians who required medical attention. 

The Jalisco prosecutor’s office said 12 detainees were released Sunday night and early Monday, leaving 27 in custody. Those freed remain under investigation, according to news reports.

Demonstrators marched about 1.5 kilometers from the Minerva roundabout in western Guadalajara to Casa Jalisco, the official residence of Jalisco’s governor, Pablo Lemus of the Citizens’ Movement (MC) party — who last week announced a water rationing plan aimed at addressing the crisis.

Some tore down a barricade and threw rocks and sticks before riot police deployed tear gas and water cannons, according to media reports.

State officials blamed the violence on roughly 400 people, many wearing hoods, saying the march had proceeded peacefully before their arrival. That account has not been independently verified.

In her morning press conference Monday, President Claudia Sheinbaum questioned the police response, saying authorities must distinguish between containing violence and repressing demonstrations. She demanded that Lemus explain the use of force and identify those arrested.

Lemus said he had requested a case-by-case review of the arrests and an examination of video footage for possible police abuses.

Sheinbaum commits federal help to Guadalajara water crisis, presses Jalisco on protest crackdown: Monday’s mañanera recapped

The Jalisco State Human Rights Commission received five complaints alleging abuses and requested medical attention and prompt determinations of detainees’ legal status.

The University of Guadalajara said Sunday that three of its students had been arrested and called for their safety and release.

ITESO, a Jesuit university in Tlaquepaque, also said members of its community had been detained but did not specify how many.

The protest followed months of complaints, dating back to April and even last year, about discolored water. Lemus blamed deteriorating infrastructure and irregular discharges into a canal feeding the Las Pintas dam.

The state announced a six-month suspension of supplies from the dam, reducing available water and potentially requiring tanker deliveries to some neighborhoods.

While the Jalisco government estimated attendance at Sunday’s protest at about 10,000, an AI-assisted analysis by University of Guadalajara researchers put the midday crowd at about 21,400, with a probable range of 16,200 to 27,200, UDGTV reported.

With reports from Infobae, El Financiero, SDP Noticias, Uno TV and UDGTV

Nestlé to invest additional US $1B in Mexico before 2030

By
MND Staff
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Nestlé's prior US $1B investment announcement supported the expansion of production lines at plants in Veracruz, Guanajuato, Querétaro and México state.
Nestlé's prior US $1B investment announcement supported the expansion of production lines at plants in Veracruz, Guanajuato, Querétaro and México state. (Cuartoscuro)

Swiss food and beverage multinational Nestlé plans to increase its announced investment in Mexico from US $1 billion to $2 billion during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, Sheinbaum announced on Thursday after hosting CEO Philipp Navratil at the National Palace on Wednesday.

“In 2028-2030, they will boost national production and local supply with 70,000 coffee plants and the incorporation of 2,000 producers from Veracruz,” added Sheinbaum. 

This marks the second time Sheinbaum has met with Nestlé executives during her presidency, following discussions at the National Palace in January 2025. 

Then, Sheinbaum met with Nestlé CEO for the Americas, Steve Presley, and the CEO of Nestlé Mexico, Fausto Costa, who had announced a $1 billion investment for the 2025-2027 period. “That investment has already been completed,” Sheinbaum said during her Oct. 9 morning press conference.

The prior investment supported the expansion of production lines at plants in Veracruz, Guanajuato, Querétaro and México state, as well as a new US $180M distribution center in Zumpango, México state, which aims to transform Mexico into an export hub for Nestlé. 

In 2025, Mexico was Nestlé’s fourth-most-important market worldwide and its second-most-attractive market for investment. 

Mexico and the European Union signed a modernized economic agreement in May 2026 aimed at deepening trade, investment and political cooperation. The agreement could create additional expansion opportunities for European businesses operating in Mexico, although its full implementation remains subject to ratification.

With reports from El Economista, Infobae and Imagen del Golfo

Did the killing of ‘El Mencho’ in February change the cartel he led? US report offers clues

By
MND Staff
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0
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), whose members are seen here patrolling near Morelia, Michoacán, continues to function largely as it did before El Mencho's death, according to OSAC.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), whose members are seen here patrolling near Morelia, Michoacán, continues to function largely as it did before El Mencho's death, according to OSAC. (Cuartoscuro)

The death in February of Nemesio Rubén “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes did not lead to “large-scale fragmentation” of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), but there are signs that “some structural weakening” of the criminal organization “may have occurred,” according to a U.S. State Department-affiliated security body.

Osegeura, the founder and erstwhile leader of the CJNG, was fatally wounded during a Mexican military operation in Jalisco on Feb. 22.

Within hours of the operation, CJNG members erected narco-blockades and set vehicles, buses and businesses ablaze across at least seven states
Within hours of the operation to capture “El Mencho,” CJNG members erected narco-blockades and set vehicles, buses and businesses ablaze across many states. (Juan José Estrada Serafín/Cuartoscuro)

In an Oct. 9 report titled “CJNG After El Mencho,” the Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) — a public-private partnership between security professionals from global U.S. organizations and the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service — noted that “armed CJNG personnel attacked businesses and implemented roadblocks across Mexico” in retaliation for the operation against Oseguera.

It also wrote that “El Mencho’s death sparked fears of potential intra-cartel violence, as some believed CJNG ranking members might compete for control over CJNG.”

Why hasn’t ‘large-scale fragmentation’ of the CJNG occurred?

OSAC said that “analysts can evaluate the law enforcement action against El Mencho as an example of a decapitation strike, in which a government attempts to limit the power of a criminal group by removing its leader and thereby fragmenting operations that rely on a central figure of authority.”

“In this case, the intention may have been to remove the top-level leader that inspired loyalty among high-ranking CJNG members and cause the franchise cells to fragment without executive-level direction,” OSAC said.

However, “large-scale fragmentation” of the CJNG “has not occurred” since El Mencho’s death, OSAC said. It suggested such fragmentation hasn’t occurred because “El Mencho had been under such intense pressure from the looming threat of arrest that the daily operations of CJNG had already begun to function without him.”

“The success of the brand of CJNG might have outgrown loyalty to El Mencho as an individual,” OSAC said.

No ‘significant violent competition for the top spot in CJNG’

OSAC noted that “some sources,” including the U.S. Department of State, have identified Juan Carlos Valencia González — El Mencho’s stepson — as the new leader of the CJNG.

Reward for CJNG’s new leader jumps to $25 million after ‘El Mencho’s’ death

“Other analysis suggests that CJNG has not named a new single top leader but instead relies on its network of several powerful regional leaders,” OSAC said.

“In either case, there was not a significant violent competition for the top spot in CJNG, which some analysts feared following El Mencho’s death.”

OSAC said that the absence of “significant violent competition” to succeed Osegura “may have been due to the slow shift away from centralized authority under El Mencho.”

“The relatively stable continuity of leadership has left most of CJNG’s regional operations intact,” OSAC added.

“For example, residents of Michoacán began reporting the resumption of drone attacks by CJNG members in March, just weeks after … El Mencho’s death. Furthermore, CJNG is reportedly engaging in renewed inter-cartel violence with the Mayiza faction of the Sinaloa cartel, suggesting CJNG’s resources are robust enough to defend territory.”

Are authorities winning the fight against the CJNG?

While the CJNG continues to operate across much of Mexico, the criminal organization was “not entirely unaffected” by the death of El Mencho, according to OSAC.

“CJNG has not conducted a large-scale attack or territorial push since February,” OSAC wrote.

“This suggests that although they are not dismantled, some structural weakening may have occurred, limiting their capacity to impose themselves against rivals.”

OSAC noted that law enforcement actions have “continued to successfully capture CJNG personnel throughout Mexico,” including Audias “El Jardinero” Flores Silva, a former security chief for El Mencho.

“In August, Mexican security minister Omar García Harfuch announced that law enforcement operations across Hidalgo, Jalisco, and Michoacán had resulted in the arrest of 32 CJNG members,” OSAC wrote.

“Arrests have been particularly effective against the money laundering facilitators of CJNG, the Cuinis, whose leadership has been arrested, limiting their influence. Both Mexican and U.S. authorities have also been effective at freezing accounts and assets linked to CJNG and its members,” OSAC said.

The Overseas Security Advisory Council said that “[c]larity as to how strong CJNG remains since El Mencho’s death will become apparent as more reliable crime data is produced, including a clearer picture of homicides, disappearances, and measures of illicit activity in areas where CJNG predominates.”

“A precipitous fall in homicides in areas like Jalisco and Michoacan where CJNG controls large swaths of territory would be a sign that law enforcement actions have been effective at limiting CJNG’s influence,” OSAC wrote.

Data presented by the federal government on Sept. 8 showed that homicides declined 39.6% in annual terms in Jalisco in the first eight months of 2026. The year-over-year decline in homicides in Michoacán in the same period was slightly higher at 40.5%.

captured El Tanque
Captured CJNG regional boss Iván Cazarín Molina (“El Tanque”) gets his photo op with law enforcement officials in October. CJNG-related arrests are increasingly in the news. (@OHarfuch/X)

The significant reductions in homicides in Jalisco and Michoacán, as well as the arrests of numerous alleged CJNG members, indicate that the government is indeed making progress in weakening the powerful criminal organization in those states.

However, there is still plenty of work to do. Jalisco and Michoacán ranked among the 11 most violent states in Mexico in terms of total homicides between January and August, and some states where the CJNG operates, such as Guanajuato, México state and Guerrero, recorded even higher murder rates in the first eight months of 2026.

Mexico News Daily 

Acapulco will work with Quintana Roo’s tourism sector to lure back international visitors

By
MND Staff
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urodam de la naviera Holland America Line que nos visita con 2913
The arrival Monday of the Eurodam of the Holland America Line that brought 2,913 foreign tourists to Acapulco's port is an example of the kind of international tourism that the city is trying to promote. (Abelina López Rodríguez/Facebook)

The resort and port city of Acapulco, Guerrero, is seeking to attract more international visitors by working together with the tourist mecca Quintana Roo.

One of the main aims is to capitalize on the new direct air route between Cancún, Quintana Roo, and Acapulco, with operations by Viva Aerobus scheduled to begin on Nov. 3. The connection will facilitate travel between the Mexican Caribbean and Pacific coasts, thus opening up opportunities to encourage visitors arriving in Quintana Roo to extend their visit to Acapulco.

The cooperation initiative, spearheaded by Acapulco Mayor Abelina López Rodríguez, entails the signing of collaboration agreements to strengthen commercial ties between the two destinations and expand opportunities for mutual tourism promotion.

To that end, Acapulco Tourism Minister Noé Peralta Herrera will undertake a working tour of Cancún and Playa del Carmen this week, where he will hold meetings with travel agencies, tour operators and industry representatives.

“We must form alliances and work together with travel agencies, tour operators, and our business partners to recover the foreign market,” Peralta said in a statement.

More Acapulco tourism additions — and one setback

Acapulco welcomed back Monday the Eurodam — a Holland America Line cruise ship owned by Carnival Corporation — after a 17-year hiatus in the port city.

Another novelty includes a new direct Puebla-Acapulco air route, operated by Volaris, which will launch on Dec. 1, 2026.

Flight from Puebla to Acapulco
Direct flights from Volaris will connect Puebla with Acapulco on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays beginning Dec. 1. (Guerrero Tourism Ministry)

With a duration of 55 minutes, the flight is part of Puebla International Airport’s expanded offerings and provides an alternative for travelers wishing to visit Acapulco without making the journey by road. 

Details released for the inaugural flight indicate a departure time of 11:55 a.m., with ticket prices starting at 457 pesos per person (US $25).

Furthermore, in an interview with the newspaper Milenio, Peralta shared plans to advance the recovery of flights to and from destinations in Canada, as well as Los Angeles and Chicago. According to Peralta, Chicago is home to a community of more than 500,000 people from Guerrero.

Efforts to boost tourism in Acapulco suffered a recent setback as rough seas associated with Hurricane Simon led to the cancellation of the scheduled Oct. 11 arrival of the Norwegian Joy, a cruise that was expected to bring 3,555 passengers and 1,623 crew members. 

With reports from El Universal and Quadratín Guerrero

FT: Trump raised energy deals with Sheinbaum amid stalled trade talks

By
MND Staff
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natural gas pipeline
Mexico already depends heavily on the United States' natural gas exports to meet domestic demand. According to reporting by the Financial Times, U.S. President Trump sees a business opportunity for U.S. energy companies. (Unsplash)

U.S. President Donald Trump has pressured Mexico to sign energy deals with U.S. companies, “triggering alarm in Mexico City,” according to the Financial Times (FT).

The British newspaper’s reporting is based on information it received from three people said to be familiar with a telephone conversation between Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in mid-September.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and US President Donald Trump
Citing two of its sources, the newspaper said that the United States’ “new request on energy” contributed to a delay of a formal round of trade talks which were scheduled for September and which have not yet been rescheduled. (Camila Ayala Benabib/Cuartoscuro, Shutterstock)

“Donald Trump has pressed Mexico to ink energy deals with U.S. companies as trade talks between Washington and its largest trading partner stall, triggering alarm in Mexico City where foreign investment in the sector is highly sensitive,” FT wrote in a report published last Friday.

“The U.S. president insisted in a call with his counterpart Claudia Sheinbaum last month that there should be more deals and tie-ups between Mexican and U.S. energy companies, according to three people familiar with the call.”

FT wrote that one of its sources said that Trump initially asked Sheinbaum about a deal to sell Mexican assets to the U.S. The completion of such a deal would be highly unlikely given that the Mexican government is seeking to strengthen energy sovereignty, rather than sell off assets.

Citing two of its sources, FT reported that Trump and Sheinbaum “also discussed a deal similar to the one signed last year with South Korea, in which Seoul agreed to buy [US] $100bn of U.S. energy products and invest billions more in the U.S.”

Citing a U.S. official, FT said the two leaders “discussed the prospect of Mexico increasing purchases of U.S. natural gas, on which it already depends for about three-quarters of its demand.”

“The official added that the talks were focused on reducing Mexico’s trade surplus with the U.S.,” the newspaper wrote.

That surplus increased more than 20% year over year in the first eight months of 2026, climbing to almost $156 billion. The size of Mexico’s surplus has drawn the ire of Trump, who argues that the U.S. has long gotten a raw deal on trade with countries around the world.

State control of energy meets US trade pressure

FT didn’t disclose anything about Sheinbaum’s response to Trump’s apparent push for energy deals and asset sales.

However, the newspaper did write that Sheinbaum’s party, Morena, “has put state control of energy at the heart of its agenda.”

Just last week, Energy Minister Luz Elena González told reporters that the government is targeting a 60% public share of electricity generation, above the 54% share mandated by law. The government, like its predecessor, has poured money into Pemex to strengthen the state oil company after what Sheinbaum and former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador describe as decades of neglect during Mexico’s so-called “neoliberal period.”

Under López Obrador, the Mexican government rolled back parts of a 2014 reform that opened up Mexico’s energy sector to foreign and private companies.

However, FT reported that “Sheinbaum is cautiously trying to restart pockets of private investment in the ailing [energy] sector as oil production hits record lows and cities have experienced blackouts due to strain on the electricity grid.”

“State companies Pemex and CFE, however, will remain dominant,” the newspaper added.

Trump’s reported pressure on the Mexican president came at a time when the United States and Mexico continued to engage in trade talks. On July 1, the U.S. government announced that it had declined to renew the USMCA trade pact in its “current form,” and since then it has been discussing a range of trade issues with Mexico.

While the USMCA remains in effect, and most Mexican exports enter the U.S. tariff-free, the Mexican government is seeking to have U.S. duties on steel, aluminum and vehicles reduced, if not eliminated.

FT’s reporting indicates that Trump could be conditioning tariff reductions on energy sector concessions from Mexico. Citing two of its sources, the newspaper said that the United States’ “new request on energy” contributed to a delay of a formal round of trade talks which were scheduled for September and which have not yet been rescheduled.

Earlier this year, the Office of the United States Trade Representative strongly criticized Mexico’s energy sector framework, raising a range of concerns that it says disadvantage U.S. energy companies.

US gas imports rise despite sovereignty push

Mexico’s imports of natural gas from the United States increased in the first seven months of 2026 to reach a record high of 6.8 billion cubic feet per day, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The year-over-year increase in the period was 1.8%.

Mexico’s natural gas imports from the U.S. have now increased in the January-July period of four consecutive years. In May, June and July, daily imports of U.S. natural gas — a key fuel for industry and electricity generation — averaged more than 7 billion cubic feet per day. The newspaper El Economista reported that it was the first time that imports exceeded that mark during three consecutive months.

Sheinbaum is determined to reduce Mexico’s reliance on imported natural gas and, to that end, has changed her stance on fracking, asserting that the controversial gas and oil extraction technique can now take place sustainably and safely.

However, her government has not yet authorized fracking projects in northern Mexico, where significant non-conventional gas and oil reserves are believed to be located, and even if it were to do so soon, it would likely be years before Mexico could meaningfully reduce its gas imports from the U.S.

Whether Mexico is prepared to further increase its purchases of U.S. natural gas — as Trump would apparently like to see happen — remains to be seen. While Sheinbaum is determined to strengthen Mexico’s energy sovereignty, the need for imported gas will ultimately depend on domestic demand and supply.

One potential supplier of additional natural gas to Mexico is the U.S. state of New Mexico. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham traveled to Mexico City last month, with the aim of advancing “potential trade deals in natural gas exports,” according to the governor’s office.

With reports from Financial Times and El Economista

Senate unanimously approves measure amending Tourism Law to prevent child sexual exploitation

By
MND Staff
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tourists on vacation with their child
Mexico is the second-largest destination globally for the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. Due to the predominance of Mexico's tourism sector, domestic or foreign offenders will often use hotels, posing as tourists on vacation with their child. (Shutterstock)

The Mexican Senate has approved an amendment to the General Tourism Law aimed at preventing the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents.

A new measure will require tourism service providers to verify, via official documentation, the kinship, parental authority, guardianship or care and custody status of minors traveling with adults. If such a relationship cannot be proven, service providers, such as hotels and rentals, must refuse their booking — regardless of whether it is made in person or electronically —  and immediately notify authorities for further investigation. 

It has yet to be established which official documents will serve as proof of identity, and what specific tourism providers will be obliged to comply. As noted by the lawyer Magda Zayas in an opinion piece for the newspaper Diario del Istmo, the amendment’s effective implementation will require training of front-line personnel and critical back-end updates to online booking systems that operate in Mexico. 

Citing data from World Vision Mexico, the Senate said in a statement that the country is the second-largest destination for the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents, and it ranks first globally in the consumption of child pornography.

PAN Senator Laura Esquivel Torres said that Mexico will stop being a destination for sexual exploitation of minors thanks to the amendment.  

“Pedophiles don’t come to Mexico by chance; they come because they have the opportunity to do so here, because they know Mexico is a pedophile’s paradise. Well, starting today, we will begin to shut down these opportunities,” Esquivel said.  

Meanwhile, PRI Senator Carolina Viggiano Austria mentioned that more than 16,000 children are trapped in sexual exploitation networks in Mexico, primarily in tourist destinations.

Laura Esquivel Torres
According to Senator Laura Esquivel Torres, pedophiles come to Mexico “because they know Mexico is a pedophile’s paradise.” This amendment aims to overturn that unfortunate reputation. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)

According to the bill, the Tourism Ministry has defined the sexual exploitation of minors in the tourism sector as occurring when an offender poses as a domestic or foreign tourist and travels to a specific destination to initiate sexual contact with minors.  

The bill was approved unanimously, with 104 votes, and sent to the president’s office for signing.

Similar initiatives are taking place at the local level. In May, the Association of Hotels of Cancún, Puerto Morelos and Isla Mujeres (AHCPMIM), Quintana Roo, formalized its commitment to “The Code,” a global initiative seeking to eradicate the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the travel and tourism sector. 

With reports from Reportur and Uno TV

MND Local Guadalajara: October food and music fests abound, while officials investigate contamination at Huaxtla Falls

By
Dawn Stoner
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Live music concert experience in Zapopan, with fans holding up rock on signs as they mass in front of the smoky stage
Music and food fests are in no short supply in the Guadalajara Metro Area this month. (Geovanni Herrera/Unsplash)

Music and gastronomy take center stage this month with celebrations in Zapopan’s historic center, a beer tasting at Foro Expo Guadalajara, and free mariachi performances. But first, we cover the recent investigations into sewage contamination at the popular nature spot Huaxtla Falls in north Zapopan.

Local residents complain of sewage contamination at Huaxtla Falls

Located in the Sierra de Huaxtla in the municipality of Zapopan, Jalisco, about 40 to 60 minutes (about 28 miles) from Guadalajara, Huaxtla Falls is a popular nature spot for locals and tourists. The site’s normally turquoise rock pools and idyllic setting within the Cañón del Jaguar, with the tallest waterfall reaching a height of 24 meters (about 78 feet), are a stunning natural wonder.

Huaxtla Falls in north Zapopan
Huaxtla Falls is an idyllic setting … or at least it was before a toxic leachate runoff began contaminating its normally turquoise pools (as seen here).  (Cascadas de Huaxtla)

Now, area residents, local environmental groups and researchers are up in arms over the discovery of a thick, foul-smelling toxic leachate runoff turning the once-pristine waters an opaque brown.

The local environmental group Center for Studies and Research of the Barranca (CEIBA) has pointed the finger at the Picachos and Hasar’s landfills, which operate upstream from the falls, processing the GMA’s considerable waste stream. Both have a history of dumping garbage runoff into the river basin, with contamination carried by the Milpillas River downstream to the Santiago River, which feeds Huaxtla Falls.

In addition to spoiling Huaxtla Falls, several communities downstream — including Ixcatán, La Soledad, San Lorenzo and Milpillas — rely on this water for their livestock and crops.

Nearby residents have expressed anger over governmental inaction. Notably, the federal environmental watchdog agency, Profepa, missed a scheduled inspection in mid-September, while previous cleanup agreements dating back to 2009 by the Zapopan city council have gone unfulfilled.

Jalisco governor announces water-rationing plan for Guadalajara amid contamination crisis

Following the most recent complaints, Jalisco Gov. Pablo Lemus Navarro confirmed that Profepa has intervened and placed closure seals on the specific area where the leachate leak occurred. He added that the immediate runoff has been contained to prevent further damage to the river basin and natural areas, including Huaxtla Falls.

For its part, Zapopan’s City Council acknowledged operational failures in managing wastewater at the Picachos landfill during the recent rainy season.

At the end of September, representatives from Profepa and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) finally carried out a “verification” tour of the Huaxtla Waterfalls. During the visit, they documented the deterioration in water quality, took samples and announced several remedial measures to clean up the pollution.

Park representatives, ejido (farming collective) members, residents and small landowners from Ixcatán, La Soledad, Huaxtla, San Lorenzo and Milpillas also participated in the tour.

Formal technical and scientific investigations are ongoing to determine the source of the contamination and extent of the environmental damage before assigning legal blame.

Chela Fest 2026 is coming to the Guadalajara Expo

Chela Fest promises plenty of sampling opportunities for regional beer lovers. (Chela Fest GDL/Instagram)

Attention beer lovers! Chela Fest GDL celebrates its first edition this coming weekend at Expo Guadalajara, bringing together artisanal breweries, gastronomy, live music and immersive experiences under one roof.

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet and mingle with owners and brewmasters from 25 different breweries and sample different beer styles from among 100 different brands. The event also promises live music from local artists, including Bahía Colors, Softgun and Punch, plus interactive experiences on both days, including a costume contest on Saturday and Cowboy Sunday, where guests can don their Stetsons and enjoy camaraderie with friends and family.

Confirmed brewers participating in this year’s event include local favorites Cervecería Fortuna and Loba Cerveza, as well as Mula Prieta, Gulden Draak and HereXe. For more details, check the event’s social media.

Dates: Oct. 17–18, 2026, from noon to 10 p.m.

Location: Foro Expo Guadalajara

Cost: Tickets start at 150 pesos and are available on BoletoMóvil or at local brewpubs such as Loba Cerveza in Colonia Americana.

Free mariachi nights in downtown Guadalajara this month

MND Local Puerto Vallarta: Mariachis, murals, drainage and demolition

Recognized as part of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity since 2011, mariachi music is synonymous with Jalisco.

This month, downtown Guadalajara is hosting free mariachi performances on Paseo Alcalde, directly across from the Rotonda de los Hombres Ilustres, so come out and enjoy the festivities with family and friends. The pedestrian promenade should offer plenty of room for dancing and delighting in one of Jalisco’s most cherished pastimes.

The final mariachi performance of this series is happening Oct. 16, starting at 7 p.m. The concert is free to all, with no reservations or tickets required.

Day of the Dead Gastronomic Festival in Zapopan

A Catrina bride parade is one of the highlights of the Day of the Dead Food Festival, coming soon to Zapopan. (Turismo Zapopan/Instagram)

The Day of the Dead Food Festival returns to downtown Zapopan for two days, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, in Plaza de las Américas.

Beyond the ubiquitous pan de muerto, guests can expect a diverse offering of hearty dishes to sample, including tamales, tacos, pozole rojo and sweet treats, with traditional hot drinks such as café de olla (coffee seasoned with cinnamon and piloncillo) to wash it all down.

In addition to Day of the Dead culinary classics, attendees will also be treated to live music and a Catrina bride parade on Saturday evening starting at 5:30 p.m., with participants decked out in resplendent embroidered gowns, French hats and painted skull makeup.

Free admission, with snacks available for purchase. For more details, visit Turismo Zapopan‘s social media.

MND writer Dawn Stoner is reporting from Guadalajara.

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